Boys Soccer: Lane tops Lake View, reaches city final

Lane entered the city soccer season on a mission and holding a collective chip on their shoulder.

With a strong returning nucleus from last year’s city runner-up supported by members of an undefeated lower-level program, the city title has long been considered the Indians to lose.

Lane is living up to the promise.

Star junior forward Jose Fuentes scored two goals and senior forward Beto Rojas punctuated the dominant performance with a late goal that propelled the host Indians past Lake View 3-0 in the semifinals of the Public League soccer tournament Tuesday at Lane.

Lane (12-4-2) qualified for city’s final against the winner of Mather and Kelly Thursday at UIC. Lane lost 1-0 to Mather, the eventual Class 2A state champion, in last year’s final.

It was a mirror-like performance by Fuentes, who scored the first two goals against Washington Saturday. Late in the first half, he exploded past his defender and took a perfect through ball from junior midfielder Ivan Rizov.

Lake View junior keeper Aldo Corzantes left the box, but Fuentes frooze him with a hesitation move and pulled it by him into the left corner in the 37th minute. “I had just come off the bench, got back into the game and started running and the ball was right there,” Fuentes said.

Fuentes has a team-best 11 goals.

The game was played in ferocious and constantly swirling 20-mile an hour winds. Lane senior keeper Martin Rosas made the save of the game, a diving stop off of Wildcats’ star Ian Crespo in the closing seconds of the first half to preserve Lane’s advantage.

“The wind made it tough out there,” Rosas said, and it turned the ball left. Fortunately I was able to throw my body and deflect it.” Rosas recorded his fourth consecutive shutout.

Fuentes ended any possibility of a Lake View upset in the 50th minute. Once again collaborating with Rizov, he drilled a ball from just outside the box that curled inside the near post. “I didn’t really have time to think about it,” he said. “I just turned and shot the ball.”

Rojas put the game away in the 63rd minute, sticking with a ball that he maneuvered past Corzantes for the final score. “I just did what my coaches always say and followed my shot,” Rojas said.

“After the first goal, we settled down and played more relaxed,” he said. Rojas scored his10th goal of the year. The Indians remained unbeaten in games decided on the field. Their only losses were forfeits during the Chicago Teachers Union strike.

The game was closer than the final indicated, Lake View coach Fernando Rodriguez said. “Lane is a very good team and they wanted to speed the game up and we were trying to slow it down,” he said. “We were hurt by those through balls.”